


Seeing Through Shadows

by karrenia_rune



Category: X-Men (Comicverse)
Genre: Age of Apocalypse, Gen, comic-verse, community: apocalyypthon Round 5
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-06-05
Updated: 2010-06-05
Packaged: 2017-10-09 22:43:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/92385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karrenia_rune/pseuds/karrenia_rune
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world gone horribly wrong her devil-may-care attitude and a lot of cynicism are not things that that just come with the territory; but they certainly do come in handy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Seeing Through Shadows

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tielan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tielan/gifts).



Title: Seeing Through Shadows  
Author: karrenia_rune  
Recipient: tielan  
Fandom: X-Men (Comic)  
Rating: PG-13  
Character: Domino  
Words: 1658  


Disclaimer: The X-Men and the Age of Apocalypse and the characters of Domino, Grizzly, and any others who appear here or are mentioned are the property Marvel Comics Entertainment Inc, and their creators; and are only 'borrowed' for the purposes of the story.

 

"Seeing through the Shadows" by karrenia

Outside of the perimeter of what she and the few allies and acquaintances she had managed to build up; referred to the Dome Zone. She knew was well aware that many lot of things since the world changed, and as always appearances were in the eye of the beholder.

She walked the corridors of the Aerie with a bold confident stride aware without consciously showing that she knew about the eye-tracks that follow her of those who congregate and move to and fro throughout the multi-level tiers of the Aerie. She wondered, not for the first time, why such a place should exist on the very periphery of the ugliness, the grittiness of the outside world.

Is it to give the haves the illusion of a security? Is it too point out the to those with money or power or both that it will stay regardless of the cold hard facts?

Domino was not usually given to reflection; having been far to occupied in the past several months scrambling and fighting her way up the ranks to attain her present position to worry about what to her are merely superfluous philosophical musings; but she can't help feeling a tad bit prickly about all of it.  
***

The man she has come to see, the one they called Archangel, with his golden hair and feathery wings, strikes her as too much of a golden bay; all show and hardly any substance to be worth much; yet having cased the joint and having seen with her own eyes the decadence and the corruption she might withhold her final judgment.

Once she finally laid eyes on the man; she realized with the force of a sucker punch to the gut; he belongs here, and although her mission is merely to deliver a document containing dispatches from troops in the field; a not so unfamiliar itch made itself known at the nape of her neck making the fine coal-black hair stand on end.

The differences between the haves and the have-nots were always in stark contrast; and yet somehow, by dint of hard work, having contacts in the high and low circles of the power brokers she had managed to find a way of moving between the two worlds.

She was well aware that Grizzly would not agree with that particular assessment, but then that big beer-guzzling, muscle-bound bear of a man could find a way to gripe about just about everything.

Perhaps, just perhaps, mind you.. ..if the entirety of the world down to its very core could so drastically change as to be almost unrecognizable there would be at least or perhaps more than one constant; and that was Grizzly and his griping.

Domino allowed herself a wry half-smile that twisted her ruby-red painted lips to curve.

The guards at the main entrance had searched upon her entrance and she had grudgingly relinquished her guns and assorted weaponry, however she had without even realizing had begun to reach for her gun, she wanted to kill this feathered fop; but she knew even had she carried out the impulse.

It would do little good, short of removing Archangel from the equation; at best it would mean a demotion in status once news of it reached a higher up authority. at worst she might be injured in the scuffle. She heaved a sigh and waited for him to acknowledge her presence.

"Oh," Archangel said when he had at least taken his gaze off whatever it was outside of his floor-to ceiling windows that had up until now absorbed so much of his attention and noticed her. "Are you the courier?"

"I can be, in a pinch." Domino could not help offering him just a little of her devastating wit even as she thought to herself, "what a damn jerk, but I suppose in his own way he serves a purpose, but really do I care a damn one way or the other?' Aloud she replied. "Yeah, I am." And then she thrust the leather satchel with the dispatches toward him.

He took them and then glanced down at her. "Haven't I seen you somewhere before?" Archangel realized that he been wool-gathering, staring for hours on end at the sky, and feeling melancholy that for all his ability to fly, the sky was still as out of reach as ever.

The pale-skinned with the eye patch was not the courier he had been expecting, but then it hardly mattered as long as the dispatches were delivered on time and intact.

He realized that he was not that far gone as to not take pride in having things properly done and with decorum. That eye-patch fascinated him for some obscure reason; and the inkling that he had seen her somewhere else was a nagging feeling that refused to go away.

"Ask a tough one, what don't you?" she replied.

"Are you always this sarcastic?" he asked. He shook his head and the memory of where and when he had seen here stubbornly refused to rise to the surface of his mind. "I could have sworn I had seen you before. Do you practice before a mirror?"

"No, but there are levels of sarcasm to be maintained at all times. Look, unless you have return dispatches to be collected and sent on to someone else," she shrugged.

He suddenly snapped his fingers as the elusive memory finally floated up out of the depths of his consciousness and locked onto her face. " I got it! The gladiatorial arenas, that's where I saw you. You were with an associate, a big bear….or something."

"Don't do me any favors," Domino muttered under her breath, wondering in that split instant of decision whether or not she would regret her earlier decision of not killing him.  
In the back of her mind Domino thought. "Count yourself lucky, I could have killed you before you could blink, Mister.'

"Don't bristle so, Madam," Archangel replied. "I meant no offense."

"Well, hon," Domino purred as she square her shoulders and leaned for a bit so she could look up at his face with a steely look in blue eyes: "It's a little late for that. I'm outta here!"

With that she turned on her boot heels and marched out of the top floor of the Aerie, to the elevators and back down to the public levels where Grizzly would be waiting for her. Wondering idly if she would be too late to save the expensive furniture from Grizzly's attentions or lack thereof.

**

They both stood out from the crowd in the reception area, the gambling dens and Grizzly for more than one reason: his height, his massive arms, and add to that his refusal to wear anything except the rough gear of a soldier, and his extremely hirsute appearance.

Domino, however, is comfortable blending in when the situation warrants it; however to Grizzly's way of thinking he much preferred clad in her red armor.

They had met in the combat arenas, across from each other and at the point of the business ends of their individual weapons.

One would think that would bit a major damper on their friendship; but both had figured that they made better allies than enemies and things had more or less spun out from there.

Even in a dress, she stands out with her long legs, porcelain white skin and coal-black hair and those piercing ice-blue eyes. "Get the lead out Dom, we've got places to go, other people to see, and other things to do. And as for meself, the sooner," Grizzly muttered taking one last uneasy glance around the casino, he added grimly, "the sooner the better."

"So, how'd it go?" he asked when she arrived in the gambling den the mix of sounds and scent of the densely packed crowd almost but could not quite drown out his deep bass rumble.

She crossed over from the entrance to where he stood against one wall and casually gave the entire room a through inspection before answering. "About as well as could be expected. How much liquor did you save me?"

"It started out as a full six-pack," he replied.

"And now?" she asked arching one coal-black eyebrow at a distinct upward slant.

"I drank half off it off, waiting for you?" he replied.

"Hand it over then," she replied.

"Oh, before I forget," Grizzly said as he did as she asked and then said. "Our friend Cal radioed, wanted to talk, but also he seemed a bit, well, agitated, you know he gets sometimes."

"Yeah, I know. Go on." she replied.

"We got another assignment. A big one, with a capital A. Seems the rebels have found themselves a real powerhouse, been hiding out in the bad Lands and get this, the Big Boss wants us to go after him," Grizzly replied.

"What kind of power house?" she asked.

"Hear tell the guy who's are mark is a psionic." Grizzly grinned and on him it looked his was baring his fangs and not such flashing her pearly whites. "About time we got an assignment with some real grit and meat to it, and not just these courier junkets!"

Domino smiled and downed and swallowed half a bottle of beer before she replied. "Well, well. I hear you loud and clear, partner. Let's go find Caliban and get to work."

"By the time we're done with this chump, he won't know what hit him!" Grizzly growled.

"I could'nt have said it better myself," she replied and then clapped Grizzly on his broad back. "Let's go!"

**Author's Note:**

> originally written and posted for Tielan's request.


End file.
